Institute Reports

The Institute uses its multistate, multiyear databases to research trends in political giving, examine how contributions drive public policy debates in the states and the nation, and see how special interests give across state lines. Following is a chronological list of our most recent research reports, or click at right to view our research on the specific subject that interests you. Click the Institute's blog, The Money Tale, to include our blogs in your selected subject search.

In 2011 and 2012, only 66 percent of legislative seats were contested.[1] And even contested seats don’t necessarily indicate meaningful competitive. For instance, only 24 percent of legislative races were monetarily competitive in 2011–2012.

Incumbency remains the most powerful factor in determining a candidate’s success, followed closely by raising the most money. Not surprising, combining incumbency and money delivered a nearly unbeatable 95 percent chance of victory during the 2011-2012 elections.

In this report, the Institute updated—and upgraded—its
assessment of essential independent spending disclosure
requirements that were in effect in the states as of
September 2014. This 2014 Scorecard replaces the
Institute’s 2013 Scorecard.
Overall, scores improved in 2014 compared to...

The mounting popularity of vaping over smoking has hardly
extinguished the debate over tobacco policy. In the early
hours of Sept. 11, 2014, during a busy single-day special
session, an overwhelming bipartisan majority in the Missouri
General Assembly overrode...

When $3 million seemingly shows up out of thin air, it is
bound to garner some attention - especially if it finds its
way into a closely contested U.S. Senate race. Such was the
case in mid-July when...

The abrupt resignation last week of Virginia State Sen. Phillip Puckett sent his fellow Democrats reeling after they lost the slim control they had in the Senate. Another possible reason for democrats’ disappointment could lie in the fact that when Puckett faced a serious reelection challenge in 2011, they rallied around him with the Senate Democratic Caucus and the Democratic Party donating $617,000 to his campaign.

Thomas Fahr “Tom” Steyer is not the most widely known
name in U.S. politics. However, the former hedge fund
manager and billionaire climate activist has been climbing
the ladder of national attention ever since he injected $8
million into...

During the 2011 and 2012 elections, state-level candidates and committees raised more than $3.1 billion, surpassing the reported cost of the last comparable election cycle, 2007 and 2008.1 This increase comes on the heels of the 2009 and 2010 elections, when candidates and committees outpaced their counterparts in 2005 and 2006.

Content on this site is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License by the National Institute on Money in State Politics.Copyright 2013 National Institute on Money in State Politics | All Rights Reserved